The Meaning of Dreams
by Mysterious Miss
Summary: Naruto Namikaze had a normal life, well as normal as it could be with him being the Hokage's son. But as soon as he starts dreaming of a different life, one where he is an orphan with the last name Uzumaki, his once normal life gets turned upside down.
1. Chapter One: Awake

Disclaimer: Yes, It's True… I Don't Own Naruto.

AN: I've been thinking about building on this idea I've had for a Naruto story, so I decided to go ahead and try it out. No Prologue for this story… I will be updating my other story The Lost Son, but as for the Memories of a Lifetime… I've kind of hit an indefinite writers block. Hopefully I'll update all my stories soon but, well, they say junior year is the toughest and I think they are right…

Chapter One: Awake

* * *

"It will be difficult," Tsunade said as she gazed around her office at the people present. Sakura was watching the Godaime Hokage with a curious stare. Kakashi seemed disinterested but alert. The last person standing in front of the Hokage's desk was radiating pure determination.

"We can do it! We've already taken down some of their members," said the blond ninja.

"I don't think you understand, Naruto. Capturing a member of the Akatsuki will be far more difficult than simply killing them. You will have to track Itachi, then fight to subdue, not kill. And while Itachi may not be fighting to kill you, Naruto, he will have no qualms about killing your teammates."

"Tsunade-sama is right. We ha-"

"I think we can do it," mumbled Sakura to herself, unintentionally interrupting Kakashi.

"What did you say, Sakura?"

"We can do it. I know we can, Hokage-sama. We will run into Akatsuki eventually, especially if they're after the Kyuubi, and we will keep on running into them until the organization is completely wiped out. I think I speak for all of us when I say that we know what we're signing up for when we hunt Itachi, but at least this way there is a strong possibility of us running into Sasuke-kun."

"I agree with Sakura-chan, Granny," Naruto said as he took a step closer to Tsunade's desk.

Tsunade stared at both Naruto and Sakura for a few minutes before she shook her head. _'There both determined to find their wayward teammate. Even if I tell them no they'll probably go anyway, damn the consequences.'_

"Well, what do you say, Kakashi? Are you willing to gather a team for this mission?" Tsunade asked with a smirk.

"Yes! Thank you, Granny! Come on Sakura-chan! Let's go get ready. Kakashi-sensei, we'll meet up with you by Ichiraku Ramen in one hour," Naruto said as he started to drag Sakura out of the Hokage's office.

"We'll need to pack for a long term mission. Why did you tell Kakashi-sensei to meet us in an hour? We'll more than likely need more time than that," Sakura mumbled as she let Naruto drag her away.

"Kakashi-sensei is always late. We'll have plenty of time," Naruto responded as they made their way to the door and opened it, intending to go through it.

Before they could get out of the door, Tsunade called them back. "Naruto! Wait a minute," Tsunade said. "Close the door. We still need to figure out who will be in you team."

Naruto pouted a little and shut the door. Kakashi turned to Tsunade with a glimmer of amusement in his visible eye. "I don't think I have much of a choice now do I?"

Tsunade nodded and said, "Who do you want for this mission? Besides Naruto and Sakura."

"We need a team that specializes in tracking. I'm thinking Hinata, Kiba, and Shino, whom I'll lead. Then we'll need Yamato acting as team captain for team seven, along with Sai to complete the team."

"Very well. I will call those you mentioned to my office to brief them on what they will be doing. You will meet at the front gates in three hours to begin your mission," said the Godaime Hokage.

As Kakashi, Sakura, and Naruto started to leave, Tsunade suddenly spoke up, "Naruto, hold on. Come here."

"What now, Granny?" Naruto said after the door shut, signaling that Kakashi and Sakura left.

"Don't call me that, you brat!… But seriously, Naruto, I want you to be careful. This is Itachi you are hunting down and going up against. Remember to be cautious and think before you run into battle with any member of the Akatsuki."

"I know. I will be careful, I promise, Granny. And I don't go back on my word! That's my ninja way," Naruto said with a small smile and a serious look in his eyes.

"You better, brat. Now get going, I'm sure you have to get ready," Tsunade said with a small smile of her own.

"See ya later, Granny!" Naruto exclaimed as he turned and ran out the door. Naruto slowed down his pace until he was walking out of the Hokage Tower.

"Naruto."

"Huh?" Naruto said as he looked around for who was calling him.

"Naruto."

"Who's there," Naruto said as he turned in a circle looking for who was talking.

"Naruto!"

Naruto was still unable to identify who was talking to him. No one was even looking at him.

"Naruto! Get Up!"

All of a sudden, Naruto felt wet.

* * *

As soon as he poured the glass of water over Naruto's head, Naruto sprung up out of bed. Naruto was spitting out water and looking around before his gaze landed on the person who woke him up. Naruto's dazed gaze turned into a glare.

"Hey! Don't glare at me like that! I tried calling your name but you wouldn't respond, so I had to resort to something I knew would get you up."

"You have ten seconds before I seriously hurt you. If I were you I'd start running," Naruto said as he got up out of bed and shook his hair, flinging water droplets around the room.

"Um, you're not serious are you? I was asked to wake you up," the younger boy said. When he saw that Naruto was starting to slowly walk towards him, the boy spoke again. "You wouldn't hurt your young, innocent brother, would you?"

"Innocent?" Naruto scoffed. "You have five seconds left. Four. Three. Two…"

"MOM!" the boy yelled as he ran out of Naruto's room with Naruto hot on his heels.

"Get back here you little twerp!" Naruto yelled as he chased his brother.

"MOM! NARUTO SAID HE'S GONNA KILL ME!"

"I DID NOT YOU LITTLE LIAR!"

"MOM! NOW HE'S THREATENING ME WITH BODILY HARM!"

"SHE CAN PROBABLY HEAR US YELLING SO SHE KNOWS I SAID NO SUCH THING! NOW GET OVER HERE!"

"MOM! NOW HE-"

Both boys skidded to a stop. The younger one stopped first, causing Naruto to crash into his brother's back, sending both boys to the floor.

"What in the world is going on? Naruto! Kenji! What have I told you both about running and screaming in the house?" asked a woman with long, red hair and bright green eyes.

"Well, technically we were yelling, not screaming. There's a difference," mumbled the younger boy, also know as Kenji.

"You want to repeat that, young man?" asked their mother as she looked down at the two boys on the floor.

"No, not really."

"Good. Now what caused all this ruckus?" she asked.

"I was doing exactly as you asked and I woke Naruto up. But then he must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed because he threatened me, his younger, kind, and innocent brother, once he saw me. I swear to you on my pet Fluffy's grave that I have done no wrong," Kenji said as he looked up at his mother with puppy dog eyes.

"No wrong my a-" Naruto looked up at his mother who was giving him a disapproving stare, just daring him to finish that sentence. "You, Kenji, are far from innocent or kind. And you never even had a pet named Fluffy, or a pet at all for that matter. I was chasing you because you poured water on me."

"Well, you wouldn't wake up when I called your name. What was I supposed to do?"

"Find some other way," Naruto said in a flat voice.

"Like what?" Kenji asked as he cocked his head to the left.

"Oh I don't know. Something practical, like shaking me or yanking the covers. Not soaking me and my bed with water," Naruto said.

"You aren't soaked."

"I dried off as I ran after you. Wind whipping by you tends to do that."

"You weren't running that fast and besides I only used a glass of water. It wasn't that much water. Just the right amount to wake you."

"You don-"

"That's enough boys. Kenji, don't use water to wake up Naruto! And Naruto, don't chase after your brother in the house this early in the morning. You're twelve years old and a newly graduated ninja, act your age. And no comments from you, Kenji, because ten years old is old enough to know how to wake up your brother properly," their mom, Kushina, said. "It's time for breakfast. Get up off the floor and go wash your hands."

As the boys got up and headed towards the kitchen, Kushina followed them saying, "And don't continue this argument at the table."

"We won't," the boys both responded.

Once they were seated at the table, Naruto asked around a spoonful of cereal, "Hey mom?"

"Hm?" Kushina said as she sliced up a banana.

"Where's dad?"

Kushina gave the banana slices to the little girl in the high chair next to her before saying, "He had to go to work early this morning. I think Jiraiya is back in town so both of them are more than likely at the Hokage Tower."

The little girl began to giggle and throw the banana slices on the floor. "No, no, Naomi! Don't throw your food on the ground," Kushina said. She then turned to Naruto to finish what she was saying, "Finish up your breakfast and then you can go find him."

* * *

"Hey dad!" Naruto said as he burst into the Fourth Hokage's office. "You said you'd be finalizing the genin teams today, so… who's gonna be on my team? Who's my sensei?"

The Fourth Hokage, who was checking over some documents and talking to Jiraiya, looked up at the sound of the door to his office slamming open and his son's voice.

"You know one of these days when you decide to barge into my office, I'm going to be in an important meeting…" the Fourth Hokage started to say but his son just waved him off.

"Nah, if you were in an important meeting or something, the ANBU stationed outside your door and your secretary would try harder to keep me from coming inside," Naruto said with a cheeky grin.

"Ha! I think he got you there, Minato," Jiraiya said from his seat on the windowsill. Jiraiya then turned and started to leave through the window.

"Where are you going sensei? We're not done talking yet," Minato asks from his position behind his desk.

"I'm off to do some research. We can finish our discussion later," Jiraiya said as he leaped out the window.

"Research? Yeah right! He's just going to go peep on girls in the hot springs," Naruto said as he walked over to stand in front of his father's desk.

"How do you know that Naruto?" Minato asked looking serious. "We've made sure he doesn't, well that is, we are sure that we never mentioned that he's…"

"A pervert?" Naruto added helpfully.

"Yeah, a pervert. And he doesn't visit you that often, so how would you know?" questioned Minato.

"Umm… he… uhhh… has a reputation?" Naruto said while thinking, _'How do I know that? I can't remember… Oh well, I must of heard about it somewhere.'_

Minato gave his son a questioning look but then decided to answer the first questions Naruto asked. "Well, yes the genin teams have been finalized, but no I won't tell you who your teammates are or who your sensei is. You'll just have to wait to find out tomorrow like everybody else in your graduating class."

"What? That's no fair!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Actually, it's perfectly fair. What would be unfair is you knowing before your classmates," Minato said as Naruto pouted.

Naruto soon noticed that his father was smiling. "What are you so happy about?"

"You have the same pout that your mother does."

"I am not pouting," Naruto said as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Right… and what would you call what your doing right now?"

"I'm sulking with style."

The Yondaime Hokage just laughed.

* * *

"You are way late dad. We're heading to bed. Mom already put Naomi to bed three hours ago," Kenji said as Minato stepped though the door.

"Yeah, I even left you alone after we ate at Ichiraku Ramen. That gave you plenty of time to finish up whatever paperwork you had to left to do," Naruto said as he walked out of the bathroom with his toothbrush in his hand. Naruto started brushing his teeth again as Minato began to talk. "There was a Council meeting that dragged on longer than I thought it would. Where's your mother?"

Naruto took the toothbrush back out of his mouth and use it to point up the stairs. "I think she's upstairs in your room or taking a shower," responded Naruto over Kenji's indignant cries of "You guys had Ichiraku Ramen without ME?"

"Ok, you guys head on up to bed. Kenji, you have academy classes in the morning and Naruto, your team assignments are tomorrow," Minato said as he headed towards the stairs.

Naruto walked back into the bathroom and shut the door while Kenji followed his father saying, "Alright, I'll go to bed peacefully if, and only if, you buy me a meal at Ichiraku Ramen tomorrow."

Minato ruffled Kenji hair as he passed by and said, "You should go to bed peacefully every night. But I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen soon, I can't promise you it'll be tomorrow, but it will be sometime soon. Alright?"

"Alright. Night dad!" Kenji said as he walked to his room.

"Good night, Kenji" Minato responded.

A few minutes later Naruto came up the stairs and found his father waiting beside his door.

"Good night, Naruto," Minato said when Naruto got to the door.

"Night dad," Naruto said as he opened the door to his bedroom. Before he went all the way in his room, Naruto turned around. "Hey dad?"

"Yeah?" Minato asked as he stopped walking and turned back down the hall towards his son.

"Is… Is there such a thing as a fox with nine tails?" Naruto questioned.

"A fox with nine… Yes, there is. The demon fox, Kyuubi, but it hasn't been seen since around the time of the founding of Konoha. Why do you ask?"

"It's just, I mean, I've just… well, I don't know. I think I had a dream, or a nightmare, about something to do with it or another random fox with nine tails. I can't really remember it clearly, but it doesn't really matter. I was just curious," Naruto said.

"If you're sure… Is that all you wanted to ask?"

"Yep. Good night, dad," Naruto said as he turned back around and entered his room.

"Good night, Naruto," Minato said just before the door to Naruto's bedroom shut.

* * *

AN: Well… what'd ya think? I'm going to try to explain any unclear details in the next few chapters and just to tell you, Naruto in the dream is around 15 while the Naruto who's not in the dream is 12. You'll find how they connect later. Also, I'm sorry for any spelling or grammar mistakes I've made, but it's around one in the morning right now so… that's the reason why I've missed any mistakes when I proof read this.


	2. Chapter Two: First Vision

Disclaimer: Yes, It's True… I Don't Own Naruto.

AN: I've been thinking about building on this idea I've had for a Naruto story, so I decided to go ahead and try it out. Thanks to all of you readers who review! I really appreciate it.

Chapter Two: First Vision

* * *

After making sure Kenji got to his classroom, Naruto made his way to the room where he would hear who his assigned team would be. Once he made it to the classroom, he headed straight for a seat near a window and sat down, attempting to ignore some of the looks that most of the girls in the classroom were giving him. _'I know I have a few fan girls but not this many. Why are so many girls looking over at me? Is it because of the orange pants and jacket I'm wearing? I know I don't usually wear this much orange… or any orange at all… but, seriously, why are they still looking this way?'_

"What's with the all orange, idiot?"

'_Ohhh... That's why most of the girls are looking this way,'_ thought Naruto as he looked over at who he was sitting next to.

"I don't know. I've just felt like wearing orange lately. Got a problem with that, bastard?"

"Hn. Whatever, Naruto. I just don't think that orange is a color that a ninja should wear," said the raven-haired boy.

"… Wearing bright colors will help me with my stealth skills. Maybe you should wear bright colors too, Sasuke."

Naruto and Sasuke have been friends since their second year at the ninja academy. The first year was pure rivalry between the two as both tried to out do each other in attempt to make the Hokage, Naruto's father, and Uchiha Clan Head, Sasuke's father, proud. They also tried to put the other boy down, which is where their nicknames for each other came from. As the year progressed, they slowly became friends. By the second year in the academy, they competed with each other just for fun.

"Why would I want to wear bright colors?"

"So people don't think you're sad and broody and emo all the time."

"…"

"Just because you're trying to become better than Itachi doesn't mean you have to be emo-ish all the time. I mean look at me! I'm not all sad or emo-ish and I don't brood. I'm going to surpass my dad and become the greatest Hokage," said Naruto.

"… I'm not emo-ish, I'm being serious because I know I'll have to work my ass off to make it to Itachi's level and then surpass him. He's been an ANBU Captain for years now and has been in ANBU for even longer… and since when have you wanted to be the Hokage? I thought you always said it'd be too much work."

'… _That's a good question. Me? Hokage?… Now that I think about it, it does sound like a great goal, even if I'd have to deal with a ton of paperwork.'_ "I decided to make it my goal to become a great Hokage a few seconds ago."

"A few seconds ago?"

"Yep!"

"… Idiot"

"Bast-"

"Is this seat taken? No. Good!" a pink haired girl said, sliding behind Naruto and into the seat between him and Sasuke.

"No fair Forehead! I got here first! What gives you the right to swoop in here and sit next to Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun?" exclaimed a blonde girl who was dressed in purple.

"You're just jealous that I was quicker than you, Ino-pig," replied Sakura as she gave Ino a smug smile.

"You better move Forehead because I'm go-"

Ino was interrupted by Iruka walking into the classroom with a folder in his hands. Once he was in the center of the room he began speaking.

"Alright, everybody find a seat to sit down in so I can begin to tell you about your teams."

As some of the other newly graduated ninja found a seat, Ino sat down into the seat right above Sakura and right next to Shikamaru, who muttered, "Troublesome" when Ino sat down.

"I want to congratulate all of you on graduating from the academy and becoming genin of Konoha. I did have a speech planned to lecture you all on the fact that the ninja world, as you are now a part of, is not fun and games. But I'm certain that your team leaders will teach you all about the dangers of the shinobi world. And I'm also certain that I've given you all enough lectures and that you don't need to hear another one. Now before I begin calling out your assigned teams, let me give you one last piece of advice for the days ahead. Treasure your teammates. Teamwork is important. You have to be able to work together with your teammates to get your missions done. Those who are in your team will probably become your closest friends."

Iruka smiled as he looked out at all those seated in the classroom before he opened the folder in his hands and started to call out the teams.

* * *

"He's late," said Sakura as she leaned against one of the desks in the front row.

"You thinking what I'm thinking, Sasuke?" Naruto asked from his position leaning against the blackboard at the front of the room.

"Kakashi," said Sasuke from where he was seated on top of one of the desks.

"Who?" Sakura asked.

"The only person who could possibly be this late is Kakashi Hatake," Naruto replied.

"How do you know?" asked Sakura.

"My father was Kakashi's sensei and Kakashi will sometimes hang out around my house or my dad's office. So I know that if you want him to be anywhere on time you usually need to tell him to be there about two or three hours before the actual time you want him there."

"Or he'll be only about ten to twenty minutes late if there's food involved and he's not paying for it," Sasuke said.

"True," Naruto agreed.

After a few minutes of silence, the three genin turned to look at the door as it opened. A man poked his head in the door. He had gravity-defying, white hair and was wearing the typical jounin uniform with a facemask; he also had his leaf forehead protector slanted over one eye.

"You guys are team seven? … Hmm… Meet me on the roof in five minutes," the man said before he disappeared.

"So was that-" Sakura began to ask.

"Kakashi? Yes, yes it was," said Naruto as Sasuke got up and started to head out the door.

"Come on," Naruto said to Sakura as he followed Sasuke out the door.

"Right! I'm coming Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said as she left the room, following the two boys who left before her.

* * *

"Ok, now that we're all here and situated, why don't we introduce ourselves?" Kakashi said as he leaned against the railing while looking at his potential students who sat on the steps.

"But I already know about you and you already know about me," Naruto said to Kakashi.

"I agree with Naruto, you know all that you need to know about me and the same can be said about me knowing what I need to know about you," said Sasuke.

"Ah, but what about Sakura? What if there's something you guys don't know about me or I don't know about you? Besides, I'm the sensei here, and I'm saying that we should, at the very least, introduce ourselves formally. So state your name, likes and dislikes, hobbies, and dreams for the future," Kakashi said.

"Will you go first then, sensei? Show us how we're supposed to do it?" Sakura asked.

"Very well. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I don't feel like telling you about my likes or dislikes…"

_"… and my dreams for the future… Hmmm… well, I have many hobbies. All right, your turn," Kakashi said as he nodded to Sakura._

"_I am Sakura Haruno. What I like is… well the person I like is….(giggle)… My hobbies are…(giggle)… and my dreams for the future…(squeal)…"_

"_And your dislikes?" Kakashi prompted._

"_Naruto!" Sakura said as she glared over at Naruto._

"_Wha?" Naruto exclaimed._

"_You next, Uchiha," Kakashi said._

"_My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I dislike many things and there are very few things I like. My hobbies are none of your concern. And I wouldn't call it a dream, but an ambition, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan and kill a certain person," Sasuke said while glaring at nothing in particular._

"_Your turn to go, Nar-"_

"-uto… Naruto," Kakashi said as he snapped his fingers in front of Naruto's face.

"Eh? What?" a confused Naruto questioned. _'What the hell just happened?'_ Naruto thought.

"I said that you could go, since I already introduced myself, but if you are really that bored with all this that you feel the need to completely tune it all out, I suppose we could finish up the introductions tomorrow when I give you your genin test," said Kakashi.

"Genin test? Didn't we already take that at the academy?" Sakura asked.

"Wait... Is this test the one that dad was talking about whenever he was talking about teachers passing or failing their team?" asked Naruto.

"I think Itachi said something about this once, but he never went into any details," Sasuke said.

"The test that was given at the academy only weeds out those who would be hopeless to become official genin. Every teacher administers a test that will determine whether or not the team of the three potential genin assigned to them passes. I'll warn you that this test has a 66% chance of failure... I want you three to meet me at training ground seven at six o'clock sharp tomorrow morning… I've also decided to give you some advice about the test I'll be giving you… don't eat any breakfast, because you'll just throw it back up. See you three then," Kakashi said with an eye smile before he seemingly disappeared.

"Hn. Later," Sasuke said as he got up and started walking away.

Naruto got up and turned to leave to, but before he did he turned back to Sakura and said, "Hey, Sakura… I'd show up at the training grounds around eight o'clock tomorrow morning instead of six o'clock because Kakashi is always late. Sasuke and I will probably be showing up around eight o'clock."

As soon as Naruto finished talking to her, Sakura got up, dusted off her clothes, and went home.

* * *

AN: Please Review! This chapter was mainly to introducing that in some familiar situations, these visions/flashback/dream type things could occur, which will happen more as the story progresses. Also, in this story, Itachi didn't massacre his clan – you'll possible find out more about this later in the story. I'll try to update all my stories as soon as I can, but final exams are coming up… I'll probably update a lot more over Christmas break.


	3. Chapter Three: Meetings

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, would I be writing fan fiction? – I obviously don't own Naruto.

AN: I've been thinking about building on this idea I've had for a Naruto story, so I decided to go ahead and try it out. Thanks to all of you readers who review! I really appreciate it.

Chapter Three: Meetings

* * *

It was beginning to look like beautiful day in Konoha. Many villagers were going about their morning chores, businesses were opening, restaurants were serving appetizing breakfast foods, and children were laughing and playing while making their way to school or the ninja academy. Even in the Namikaze house the day was starting out…

"WHY DIDN'T ANYONE WAKE ME UP?"

…peacefully.

Naruto was frantically hopping around his room, pulling on his pants, as he searched for a clean shirt and his forehead protector. His younger brother, who was dressed and ready to go to the ninja academy, leaned against the door frame to Naruto's room. He watched as Naruto, who was running around the room and trying to put on the orange shirt he found, tripped.

"Ya know… I bet you could find what you're looking for faster if you stood still while trying to put on your clothes, instead of running around like a maniac," Kenji said.

As Naruto got back up, he glared at the young red head who was leaning in his door way. "Shut. Up. And why the hell didn't anyone WAKE ME! I'm going to be late, even later than Kakashi-sensei!"

"Dude, do I have to remind you about the last time I woke you up? You totally went berserk on me."

Naruto was tying the recently found forehead protector on his forehead. "Shaking is good. Water is bad. If you hadn't used water we would've been fine."

"If you didn't sleep like a log, I wouldn't have had to use water," countered Kenji.

"Still you… you know what? I don't have time for this now. I'm late," said Naruto as he made his way past Kenji and started walking down the hall. Kenji followed his older brother and when Naruto saw this, he directed a question to him.

"Would you happen to know why mom or dad didn't wake me? They knew I had my test today."

"Dad left a note saying he left for the office early today because he had some work he had to finish by this evening."

"What about mom?" Naruto asked as he was at the door putting on his shoes.

"Remember what mom said the other day? About how Naomi had a doctor's appointment that they had to go to this morning."

"Oh yeah… well, I'm going. See ya later, Kenji. Make sure you're not late for the academy."

As Naruto ran out of the door and continued down the road, Kenji shut the door behind him as he walked in the opposite direction of his brother mumbling, "Says the guy who's all ready late for his own meeting."

* * *

"Is Kakashi-sensei here yet?" Naruto asked as he ran up to his two teammates. Sasuke was leaning against one of the three posts sticking out of the ground and Sakura was sitting at the foot of the post to Sasuke's left.

"No, he's not," Sakura responded.

"Why are you so late, idiot? I knew you had enough sense not to show up at six, but I didn't think you'd show up around ten-thirty," said Sasuke while Sakura was blushing and looking down because she actually did show up to the training grounds at six. "And is your ridiculously bright shirt on inside out?"

"Shut up, you bastard! No one woke me up and so I slept late," Naruto said as he looked down at his shirt, realizing that Sasuke was right, his shirt was inside out.

"Ever hear of something called an alarm clock?" Sasuke asked.

"I always end up breaking them somehow."

Naruto walked to the post to Sasuke's right as he took off his shirt to put it on the right way. As Sakura looked on and blushed, a voice spoke up from behind the three genin.

"Well, well, well… stripping in front of a girl. I didn't think you'd be so bold, Naruto."

"Wha? Kakashi-sensei? I wasn't… eh, it wasn't… what I mean is… You're late!" Naruto said after he quickly put his shirt back on.

"A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way around."

"And it took you more than four hours to get here?" Sakura asked incredulously.

"Yes, the cat kept crossing the paths I attempted to take, so I had to keep starting over," Kakashi said with an eye smile. "Now onto today's test, I have set this alarm for noon," he said as he pulled out an alarm clock and set it down on one of the posts. "Your objective is to get these bells from me before the alarm goes off," Kakashi said as he tied the bells onto his belt.

"But sensei, there are only two bells and three of us," Sakura said.

"Exactly, the one who doesn't get a bell will be tied to one of these posts while I eat lunch in front of them."

'_So that's why he told us not to eat breakfast,'_ the three genin thought as their stomachs growled simultaneously.

"All right, if you have no other questions… begin!"

As soon as Kakashi said that, Sakura ran to the bushes and both Naruto and Sasuke leapt to the trees.

'_At least they have enough sense to hide.'_

* * *

The genin of Team 7 were at Ichiraku Ramen stand, celebrating their passing of Kakashi's test. At first, Sasuke and Naruto had tried to fight Kakashi individually and they both failed to get a bell. Then after Naruto stumbled upon Sasuke and both boys found a passed out Sakura, all three decided to join forces. Before they could act on or even make any plans, the alarm sounded. Sakura was tied to the post since she didn't do anything besides faint from a genjutsu. After Kakashi told them the real meaning behind the test, he said he would give them another chance as long as they didn't feed Sakura. In the end, both boys gave her something to eat and all three ended up passing because of that.

A comfortable silence settled over the genin as they ate their meal. They decided to eat at Ichiraku because Naruto insisted and they only ate a few bites of the meal Kakashi had provided before it was taken away.

"We're finally going to be able to do awesome missions!" Naruto exclaimed after he finished eating his bowl of ramen.

"We'll have to train hard to get good missions, Itachi told me that genin start out with D-rank missions, which are basically glorified chores," Sasuke said between bites of noodles.

"Details, details… must you always rain on my parade?" Naruto asked with a pout.

"Maybe if you weren't so over dramatic and over enthusiastic, I wouldn't have to drag you back to reality."

"Do you know if they're always like this?" Sakura asked Ayame, who was standing to the side, watching the boys bicker.

"Yes, it's just their way. Don't worry, you'll get use to it," Ayame said with a wink.

* * *

"Mom? Dad? I'm home!" Naruto said as he walked into the house and took off his shoes.

"Welcome home, sweetheart," Kenji said sarcastically from his position on the floor besides the couch. He had textbooks and papers from the academy scattered around him.

"Knock it off, Kenji. How was your day Naruto?" Kushina asked from where she was reading a book on the couch.

"Did you pass the test Kakashi gave you?" Minato asked as looked up from where he was playing with blocks with Naomi.

"It was great, mom. And don't you already know if I passed or not? Kakashi-sensei should've told you."

"He did tell me, but I wanted to hear about it from you," Minato said with a soft smile.

"Oh, well, I passed!" Naruto said with a huge grin.

"Congratulations!" Kushina said as she got up from the couch and gave Naruto a hug.

"Good job, son," Minato said.

"Thanks."

"I guess I'll get started on making dinner. Come on, Kenji. You're helping me," Kushina said.

"What? What do you mean? I have to do this homework," Kenji said as he pointed to the papers scattered around him.

"Maybe you should've thought of that before you tried to skip your classes at the academy today," Kushina said as she began to walk towards the kitchen.

"But-"

"No buts. You're on cleaning duty in the kitchen for a month. And the counters and tables need to be cleaned before we eat dinner," said Kushina as she went into the kitchen.

"Dang it!" Kenji growled as he got up from his spot and slowly made his way to the kitchen.

Naruto slouched down on the couch with a sigh. When Naomi saw him, she clapped and giggled, reaching out to Naruto. Naruto, seeing her, slid off the couch and scooted over to her.

"Hey, sis. What are you wanting?" Naruto asked as he picked up the little girl and put her in his lap. He then began to play with the blocks with her while using some baby talk. Minato watched the two of his children interacting with a soft smile on his face.

"I'm proud of you, Naruto."

"Hm?" Naruto said. He was playing with Naomi so he didn't really hear what his father had just said.

"I'm proud of you," Minato said again, with a slightly larger smile on his face.

"Y-you are?"

"Yeah. I am… You're growing up too fast. It seems like it was just yesterday that I was able to hold you in just one hand."

"I-I… I am growing up, dad. And now that I'm a genin, I'm going to work hard to keep my comrades safe and I'll work my way up to the top and become as strong as I can be because -"

"_-I want to become the greatest Hokage ever, that way people will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody… somebody important-"_

"Naruto? Are you alright?" Minato asked, his voice laced with concern.

"Ehh… sorry, I kinda spaced off I guess. Anyway, I was saying that I want to -"

"Hokage-sama." An ANBU member who appeared in the room interrupted Naruto.

"What is it?" Minato asked with a serious face. A member of ANBU wouldn't intrude in the Hokage's house unless there was some kind of emergency.

"Ibiki was able to get the intruder that was captured two day ago to finally talk. Ibiki requests that you head over to T&I as soon as possible seeing as the information he found is highly important."

"I'll be there right away," Minato said to the ANBU member. The ANBU nodded and disappeared.

"Tell you mother that I probably won't be eating dinner with you guys tonight," Minato said as he put on his Hokage robes and started slipping on his shoes. "Did you want to finish what you were saying?"

"No, it doesn't matter. It's not important." _'Would you be happy with my goal? Would you help me reach it? Or would you be to busy with your duties? It's like you're always leaving. It seems that the only time I can talk to you is at your office or late at night as I'm going to bed.'_

"All right. Bye Naruto," Minato said as he left the room.

"Bye," Naruto said softly.

* * *

Drip. Drip. Drip.

"Huh?" Naruto said as he opened his eyes and sat up. "Where the hell am I?"

He's sitting in ankle deep water in what appears to be a run down corridor or some type of sewer system with bad lighting. Naruto stands up and looks around. "Did I do some major sleep walking or something? Did I get kidnapped? The last thing I remember is trying to fall asleep in my room."

He soon hears a soft, low growling sound coming from down the hall in front of him. After a few minutes, he hears it again.

"Hmm… Should I go towards the ominous growling?" _'Which would be potentially dangerous and life threatening.'_ "Or should I turn around and try to go the other way?" _'Which would be smarter and probably safer.'_ "Decisions, decisions…"

As he considers what to do, he hears the growling again. "Just a quick peek at whatever is making that noise, and then I'll try to find my way out of here."

It seemed like he was walking in the same direction for hours. The only reason he knew he was making any progress was that the growling noise was steadily getting louder.

He soon made it to the end of the hall where there was a large room. He saw that there was a huge gate, possible a cage, at the far end of the room. It was dark and he couldn't see what was inside the cage, so Naruto decided to cautiously make his way towards the cage where he realized the noise was coming from. _'This may not be entirely smart, but damn it, I want to know what's making that growling noise.'_

When Naruto was a few feet from the gate two large, red eyes appeared and a giant claw shot out through the bars. Naruto was shocked, so he scampered back not too gracefully and landed on his butt. Before the claw could reach him the gate got in the way. And the claw was pulled back.

"W-what?"

**Hn… You act like you don't know me by the way you act, you pathetic human… Have you shrank since you were last here? You appear punier than normal.**

Before Naruto could respond, he felt like something was pulling on him and then he was no longer staring at the cage but at the ceiling of his room.

"Mom told me to wake you up so you won't be late for you team meeting and I shook you this time, so you can't say anything about me not waking you up right," Kenji said as he stared down at his older brother. "You know, I'm the younger brother. You should be waking me; I shouldn't have to be waking you up. I should be able to sleep longer like you get to."

"Quit whining. You can sleep during the long lectures they have at the academy… at least, that's what I did," Naruto said as he sat up and held his head in his hands.

"You got a headache or something?"

"No. Why don't you leave so I can get dressed in peace?"

"Are you saying that I'm annoying?"

"No, but I think that that's what I'm implying."

"Fine, fine... I'm going."

As Kenji left, Naruto took his head out of his hands and looked out the window. _'What the hell was that thing?'_

* * *

AN: Finals are over! Christmas Break is here! … So, what did you think about this chapter? I finally decided to incorporate the Kyuubi. Review Please!


	4. Chapter Four: Appearing Marks

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, would I be writing fan fiction? – I obviously don't own Naruto.

AN: I've been thinking about building on this idea I've had for a Naruto story, so I decided to go ahead and try it out. Thanks to all of you readers who review! I really appreciate it.

Chapter Four: Appearing Marks

* * *

"Where is he?" Sakura exclaimed from her position to the left of Sasuke.

"He's late like he always is," the raven-haired ninja said as he leaned on the railing of the bridge. Team Seven was waiting on a bridge for their tardy sensei to show up so they could begin doing their D-rank missions for the day.

Naruto was sitting on the ground, listening to his teammates, but not joining in on the conversation. Instead he was thinking about the weird dream he had. _'Or was it even a dream? But what else could it be? No, it was a dream… a really weird dream about sewer systems… and a large creature with claws… that I was supposed to recognize… oh whatever… I'm starting to give myself a headache.'_

A silence settled upon the members of Team Seven. With nothing to do, Naruto became bored and began to feel drowsy. It wasn't long before Naruto leaned back against the side of the bridge and fell asleep.

* * *

"_Yo! I came in here to rescue you, Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed as he entered the mirrors._

"_You… you complete MORON! How do you expect to help if you sneak into the mirrors and become trapped as well?" Sasuke responded._

"_Geez, if this is how you show your appreciation… ya know, I didn't have to come in here to help you."_

"_You are an idiot! A complete and total idiot! I don't have time for this. We have to find a way to get out of here," said Sasuke as he started doing hand signs for a fire technique. _

"_Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu!" _

_Instead of seeing puddles of water or partially melted ice mirrors, the two boys saw that the mirrors remained undamaged. _

"_Isn't fire supposed to melt ice?" questioned Naruto._

"_Shut up… MOVE!" yelled Sasuke as he and Naruto leapt out of the way of the thrown senbon._

"_Any fire you manage to produce will not be able to damage my ice mirrors," said the fake hunter-nin as he threw more senbon at the boys._

"_Grrr… Shut up!" Naruto said as he dodged even more senbon. "Take this!" Naruto yelled Naruto as he formed a hand sign. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

_Instantly solid copies of Naruto began to charge at the all mirrors simultaneously. Each and every clone was destroyed and Naruto was knocked back to the ground._

"_What the-? How?"_

"_This technique is my Bloodline Limit. It allows me to travel between the mirrors by using reflections. Give up. You do not stand a chance against me," the boy in the hunter-nin mask stated. _

"_We won't give up! Right, Sasuke?"_

"_Hn." Sasuke nodded his head in conformation. _

"_Let's do this! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed as he and his clones attempt to break the mirrors. But once again, all the clones are destroyed and Naruto is knocked back._

"_Damn it! Again! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto said as he and his clones attempt to break the ice again. As Naruto is doing this, Sasuke sees some movement as kicks up some water in hopes of tracking the movement. _

_Once Naruto is back on the ground, Sasuke whispered to him, "Again, Naruto."_

_Nodding his head, Naruto said, "Right. Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"_

_When Sasuke saw the movement, instead of kicking up water, he performed a fire jutsu. As Naruto was knocked down once more, Sasuke looked to their attacker and saw that he succeeded in hitting him with the jutsu because the end of his clothes was burned._

"_Naruto, run out of the mirrors and attack from the outside," Sasuke whispered to Naruto, both boys with senbon sticking out of them in random places. Naruto nodded and began to run at the mirrors again. As the fake hinter-nin flew to intercept Naruto, Sasuke threw another fire attack at him but it was dodged. Naruto almost made it outside of the mirrors before he was thrown back. Their attacker launched more senbon at Naruto and Sasuke before they could try their plan again. _

_They continued in trying to escape but each time they were thwarted. Both Naruto and Sasuke were getting tired. But after Naruto was knocked down again, Sasuke saw that he wasn't getting up._

"_Come on, get up! Don't make me cover for you."_

"_Sh-shut up bastard. I'm getting up," Naruto said before he passed out._

_The fake hunter-nin ignored Naruto for now and focused on Sasuke. He launched more senbon, this time aiming for vital points. Noticing this, Sasuke picked up a senbon from the ground and blocked each senbon aimed for him. When the fake hunter-nin noticed that Sasuke managed to awake his Bloodline Limit, the Sharingan, he decided it was time to end the battle. Instead of aiming for Sasuke again, he turned and aimed for the unconscious Naruto. _

_As Naruto gained consciousness, he saw Sasuke standing in front of him and in front of Sasuke was the fake hunter-nin, knocked to the ground._

"_You did it, Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed as he began to get up._

"_Sasuke?" Naruto asked when he noticed that Sasuke didn't respond._

"_You clumsy idiot," Sasuke said, not moving from where he was standing._

_Naruto finally saw the wounds Sasuke received and realized that Sasuke had defended him by taking an attack that was meant for him._

"_Why? Why did you do that? I didn't ask for you to!" Naruto yelled at Sasuke._

"_I don't know. My body moved on its own," Sasuke said before he began to fall. Naruto reached up and caught him as he slowly lowered Sasuke to the ground._

"_I hated you… I said I wouldn't die until I kill that man… my brother…" Sasuke said before his eyes closed and he went limp._

"_Sasuke? I-I… I hated you too," Naruto said as he placed Sasuke gently on the ground. _

"_Is this the first time you've seen a comrade die? He was a shinobi worthy of respect," the fake hunter-nin said. As Naruto turned to him and away from Sasuke, an unimaginable rage filled him._

"I'LL KILL YOU!" Naruto yelled as he woke from his sleep.

"Do you have to yell, you idiot! I'd like to still be able to hear. And what the hell is with the death threat?" said Sasuke as he looked at Naruto.

"W-what? Sasuke? Y-you're not dead?" Naruto asked looking back at Sasuke with wide eyes.

"Obviously I'm not dead, moron."

"Shut up, bastard. I thought… but we were…. Eh, never mind," Naruto said he stood up.

"Has Kakashi-sensei arrived yet?" Naruto asked.

"No, not yet. But he should soon, it's been three hours," Sakura responded.

"Actually it's only been two hours and fifty-seven minutes past the time I told you three to meet me here," Kakashi said as he appeared in front the members of Team Seven.

"Ah! You're late, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto and Sakura exclaimed together.

"Well, you see, all the clocks at my house somehow became two hours late and then I had to help an old lady carry her groceries to her house while stopping on the way to help some kids get their cat out of a tree," Kakashi explained.

"Liar!" Both Naruto and Sakura exclaimed again.

"Hmm… let's just go to the Hokage Tower to get our missions for today," Kakashi said as he turned to lead his team away.

* * *

"How come I got all dirty while you guys are still clean?" Naruto asked his teammates as they walked back to the Hokage Tower after a day of doing D-ranked missions. Naruto somehow managed to get himself covered from head to toe in dust and dirt.

"It's because you're clumsy, moron."

"Maybe if you were a little more careful, Naruto-kun, you would be able to stay cleaner," Sakura said.

"Although I do agree with Sasuke that your clumsy, Naruto, but what I want to know is why are you becoming more reckless than you normally are? You usually don't jump head first into things without thinking it through," Kakashi said casually.

'_That is true. Recently, I have been going with my first instinct more often than not, instead of thinking about the consequences. I guess it just feels like a habit, but why is that?'_ "Really? I hadn't noticed. I'll be more careful sensei," Naruto responded without looking at Kakashi and instead focusing on the Hokage Tower that they were rapidly approaching.

"Hmm," Kakashi hummed thoughtfully.

"Very well, you're dismissed. Except you, Naruto… What exactly did you get into?" Minato asked his son as soon as Team Seven finished giving the report about successfully completing their missions.

"I… eh, well, missions are messy business… and-"

"He was a bit clumsy today, Hokage-sama," Sakura said as she was leaving interrupting Naruto's feeble excuse.

"Heh," Naruto said as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment and watched the rest of his team walk out the door minus his sensei.

"Well, just be more careful in the future and make sure you clean up a little before your mother sees you. You'll be in trouble if you track all that dirt all over the house," Minato said.

"Right, don't worry. I will. See you later," Naruto said as he left, seeing that Kakashi obviously wanted to talk to his father.

Once the door to his office shut, Minato turned to where Kakashi was standing. "Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Yes, Minato-sensei. It's about Naruto. I've noticed that he spaces out once in a while, but he won't snap out of it right away. It's not that much of a bother now, but it will be a real danger if that happens during a higher-ranking mission. And today, before I revealed myself to my students, I saw that Naruto had fallen asleep waiting for me and he woke up yelling. Does he have nightmares often?"

'_Nightmares? I don't think he's had a nightmare since he was about eight… unless he just hasn't been telling Kushina or me. He use to be so open. Is Naruto starting to keep things from us?'_ "I'll talk to Naruto, see if I can figure out why he decides to space out," Minato responded, ignoring the question about nightmares.

* * *

"Where did these come from?" Naruto asked himself as he looked into the bathroom mirror and traced the three faint lines that had begun to appear on his face, specifically on his cheeks. They were barely visible and even Naruto would have missed the marks if he wasn't thoroughly scrubbing his face to get rid of any excess dirt that he missed when he took a shower.

"Weird… and they won't come off," Naruto said, slightly muffled, as he used a wet towel to try to rub the marks off. He stopped, dropped the towel on the side of the sink, and continued to look in the mirror. _'At least you can't really see them so mom and dad won't notice them… well, I think they won't. They might think I did this on purpose because the lines kinda look like whiskers.'_

"Hurry up, Naruto! It's time for dinner!" Kenji said as he pounded on the bathroom door.

"Oh well, I'll figure it out later," Naruto mumbled to himself.

"I'm coming!" Naruto yelled to Kenji, who was still knocking at the door. Naruto took one last look in the mirror before turning and leaving the room.

* * *

AN: Sorry for not updating sooner and yes I know this chapter isn't that long but I've been busy. I'm trying to focus mainly on this story for now, but that doesn't mean that I won't be updating my other stories. This chapter was mainly to get Minato to notice that Naruto will randomly space out. He didn't notice before because Naruto never did it in Minato's presence. PLEASE REVIEW!


	5. Chapter Five: Mission

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, would I be writing fan fiction? – I obviously don't own Naruto.

AN: I've been thinking about building on this idea I've had for a Naruto story, so I decided to go ahead and try it out. Thanks to all of you readers who review! I really appreciate the feedback.

Chapter Five: Mission

* * *

"Finally! Took you long enough," Kenji said as Naruto emerged from the bathroom.

"I wasn't in there that long," Naruto said.

"Yes you were."

"No I wasn't."

"Yes you were!"

"No I wasn't!"

"Yeah huh!"

"Nuh uh!"

"Yeah huh!"

"Nuh uh!"

"Yea-"

"Boys! Enough," Kushina said when Kenji and Naruto walked into the kitchen.

"So, what's for dinner?" Naruto asked as he and Kenji sat down in their seats.

"Yakisoba," Kushina responded as she began to dish a little out for Naomi. The little girl squeals and reaches for her food from her high chair.

"Hold on a second, sweetheart. It needs to cool down a little," said Kushina before she blew on Naomi's food to get it to cool down faster.

It was silent after everyone had gotten his or her food, apart from Naomi's occasional coo for another bite. The silence became too much for Naruto, so he decided to break it.

"It's good, mom," Naruto said, with Minato and Kenji adding their own approving comments.

"Thank you," Kushina responded with a smile as her eyes lingered on Naruto's face.

"So…" Naruto said as he looked around the table avoiding his mother's gaze. Then Naruto looked down at his plate and began to eat again.

"Something on you mind, Naruto?" Minato asked after he shared a look with Kushina.

"Eh… no, nothing," Naruto said as he thought, _'Crap! Did they notice the marks? They aren't that noticeable, are they? They couldn't have seen them already! Right?'_

"Well, I have something on my mind," Kenji said.

"Yes? What is it?"

"I have been working really hard at the academy. Although I'm not getting the highest marks in class, I'm not getting the lowest marks either. I think that everyone needs some time to relax, like a day to just laze about. You know… to refresh or recharge themselves. I believe that-"

"You still going to go to the academy tomorrow," Kushina said, interrupting Kenji.

"Now let's not make any rash decisions here. You didn't let me finish what I was saying."

"Doesn't matter, you still need to go to the academy," Minato said.

"B-but… it's going to be soooo boring," Kenji pouted.

"Why do you want to skip?" Naruto whispered to his younger brother.

"It's a lecture day tomorrow. They'll talk the whole time and expect us to pay attention," Kenji responded back in a whisper.

With a sharp intake of breath, Naruto whispered, "Yeah, I remember those. Lecture days are the worst. I don't blame you for trying to get out of it."

"Did you ever get out of them?" Kenji asked in a low voice.

"Just sit in the back of the room so you can lean against the back wall and bring a hat or sunglasses," Naruto responded in an equally low voice.

"Why?"

"So you can lean against the wall and sleep, but it looks like you are still awake and paying attention. Just make sure your eyes are covered and you don't snore."

"Cool! Thanks," whispered Kenji.

"No problem," Naruto responded as they both went back to eating like the conversation they had didn't just take place.

Both Kushina and Minato smiled and acted like they hadn't heard they whispered conversation that took place between their two boys.

* * *

"I found you, Naruto. It's over."

"Eh? Iruka-sensei? Are you here to test me? I only had time to learn one jutsu," Naruto said from his place in the clearing beside the wooden shack.

"What?" Iruka said. _'It looks like he's been practicing out here the whole time.'_

"Yeah! I'm going to show you this awesome jutsu I learned from the scroll and then you'll have to let me pass and become a ninja," Naruto exclaimed.

"Who told you that?" Iruka asked.

"Mizuki-sensei did. He told me where to find the scroll and about this place…" Naruto trailed off as he realized something was wrong.

'_Mizuki is behind this?'_ "Naruto, it's not… WATCH OUT!" Iruka yelled as he pushed Naruto out of the way of the incoming kunai.

"I see you've found this little hide away, Iruka," Mizuki said from his place on a tree branch

"Mizuki-sensei? Iruka-sensei? Wh-what's going on?" asked a confused Naruto.

"Just hand me the scroll," Mizuki said as he looked at Naruto.

"No! Don't give Mizuki the scroll!" exclaimed Iruka as he pulled a kunai out of his leg. "It contains our village secrets along with potentially dangerous, high-level techniques. He used you to get to it."

"Mizuki-sensei? You-"

"Shut up and hand over the scroll, demon," Mizuki said.

"Wh-what?"

"Oh, that's right. You don't know, do you?" Mizuki asked rhetorically.

"Know what?" Naruto asked.

"About what really happened twelve years ago and why everyone in the village hates you," Mizuki said.

"No! Don't Mizuki! Don't tell him! It's forbidden!" Iruka exclaimed.

"Tell me what?" Naruto asked as he felt something poke his face, then poke his face again, and again. _'What's poking me?'_

"That you are the ni-" Mizuki started to say but Naruto couldn't make out the rest of it as his surroundings started to fade and the something that was poking his face increased speed.

"What" _poke_ "are" _poke_ "these" _poke_ "lines" _poke_ "on" _poke_ "your" _poke _"face?" _poke_

"Quit it!" Naruto exclaimed as he sat up and knocked Kenji's hand away from his face. _'Man did that dream seem real, but what was Mizuki trying to say? I would have found out if I didn't wake up at that moment.'_

"So…" Kenji said as he stared at his older brother.

"So… what?" Naruto asked.

"Are you going to answer my question?" Kenji asked.

"What question?"

"The one I just asked."

"About answering a question?" Naruto asked as he gazed over at his clock. _'I still have an hour before I have to meet up with my team.'_

"No! I asked about the marks on your face. You know… those three black lines you have on each cheek," Kenji said.

'_Three black lines?… I don't have... Wait, three BLACK lines!' _Naruto shot up out of his bed and raced to the mirror in his room. As he looked in his mirror, he found that he did, indeed, have three black lines on each of his cheeks. _'What? I could hardly see them last night. What happened? Why are they so dark? Where did they come from?… how am I going to hide them? I can't do genjutsu. Someone could detect it, not to mention that I suck at doing genjutsu!'_

"So… are they a tattoo, marker, or make-up?" Kenji asked as he sat on Naruto's bed.

"I don't know. They just… wait, that's it! Kenji, you're a genius!" Naruto said as he ran out of the room.

"I know I'm a genius but what did I say to make you realize that?" Kenji asked as he followed Naruto.

Naruto came to a stop in the bathroom. "Shut the door, Kenji," Naruto said as he began looking through the drawers that were attached to the sink.

"What are you doing?" Kenji asked as he leaned on the closed door.

"I'm looking for some stuff to cover up these marks."

"Some stuff? Wait, you mean make-up?" Kenji asked before he began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Naruto demanded as he continued his search._ 'There has to be something I can use in here.'_

"You wearing make-up? What's not funny about that?"

Naruto decided to ignore him and continued to look. _'Ah! Now this is something that will work.'_

"Don't tell anyone about this - the marks or the make-up. And I'm serious, Kenji. Don't tell anyone, not even mom or dad," Naruto said as he looked at his younger brother.

"Alright, I won't tell anyone."

"Swear it."

"…I swear I won't tell anyone, Naruto," Kenji said. _'Besides,'_ He thought. _'This could be good blackmail material. Especially since Naruto doesn't want anyone to know.'_

"Good. Now I have to go get ready for my team meeting," Naruto said as he walked past Kenji and opened the door.

"See ya later," said Naruto.

"Yeah, see ya," Kenji said.

* * *

Naruto was able to cover the marks on his face so no one noticed them. It seemed that ever since the whisker marks appeared that one morning, the visions and weird dreams that Naruto had stopped.

In the weeks that followed, Naruto acted like nothing had ever happened although he had to cover up the marks on his face daily and try to avoid water. Team Seven continued to work together to do D-rank missions and train. Naruto thought that everything was finally going back to normal.

* * *

"Alright Team Seven, you can help dig potatoes, help watch a councilmen's granddaughter, repaint the front of a house, get groceries for-"

"No!"

"Hmm?" said the Yondaime Hokage.

"Hush, Naruto," Kakashi whispered.

"I said no. We've been doing these D-rank missions, which are basically glorified chores, for weeks. I think I speak for all of us when I say we want a better mission," Naruto said.

"I agree with Naruto, Hokage-sama," Sasuke said.

"Me too," agreed Sakura.

"So, you are wanting a C-rank mission?" Minato asked.

"Yeah!" Naruto responded.

'_I haven't had a chance to talk to Naruto about how he was spacing out, but Kakashi hasn't mentioned it happening anymore and I haven't noticed it happening. I believe that it will be all right. Also, if I don't let him go on a better mission soon, Naruto will probably start to constantly complain to me about trying to go easy on him and not giving him better missions. Although I could argue that this could be seen as favoritism. Hmm… I think I'll leave it up to Kakashi,'_ Minato thought before he said, "What do you think Kakashi? Do you think your team can handle a C-rank?"

All three genin turned to stare at Kakashi. _'Oh, gee, thanks Minato-sensei,'_ Kakashi thought sarcastically. After a moment Kakashi said, "I believe that we will be able to handle a C-rank mission."

"Very well, Team Seven will escort some one to the Land of Wave," said the Fourth Hokage

"Yes! Thank you!" exclaimed Naruto.

"Send in the client," Minato said.

When the door opened, an older man staggered in. He had a bottle of sake in his hand as he said, "I am the bridge builder Tazuna. And I expect you to guard me with your lives… wait, are these supposed to be the ninja who will guard me? They don't look like ninjas, especially the short, blond one. Aren't ninjas supposed to wear dark colors, instead of orange?" asked Tazuna.

"I'd watch what I was saying. All three genin are trained ninjas and the blond one is my son," said the Fourth Hokage.

"R-right, sorry," said Tazuna.

"Ok, we will meet at the main gates at 0600 hours. Make sure you pack for at least two weeks and don't be late tomorrow," said Kakashi.

* * *

AN: Happy New Year! 2010! Anyway, sorry for any spelling or grammar mistakes I make. The visions/dreams/flashbacks have not ended and will start back up in the next chapter, you'll find out why soon and how they connect to the whisker marks.


	6. Chapter Six: Double Vision

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, would I be writing fan fiction? – I obviously don't own Naruto.

AN: OH MY GOD! DID I JUST UPDATE? Yes, yes I did… I am so sorry for the very long delay. I kinda lost my inspiration for this story for a few months but now it's back, and I'm pretty sure I know where I'm going with this. I just got back from a long trip to Washington D.C. and I'm getting ready to go on another trip, so I can't say I'll update soon. I'll try but I'm not promising anything. I'm also trying to write for my other stories, but I can only focus on one at a time. I'll probably update this story again and then try to update another story. It just depends on if I have time and if I am in the mood to write. Thanks to all of you readers who review! I really appreciate the feedback.

Chapter Six: Double Vision

* * *

"Are there any ninjas in the Land of Waves?" Sakura asked.

Team Seven and Tazuna had met up at the gates at promptly 0600 hours. Kakashi was on time, shocking his students. Since then, they had been making their way towards the Land of Waves without running into any problems.

'_My first time out of the village… so far, so good... even if it is only walking… or escorting… whatever. At least it's a C-ranked mission and not those stupid D-ranked chores.'_ Naruto thought, not really paying any attention to the conversation between Sakura, Kakashi, and Tazuna. _'Hmm… I wonder what it will be like in the Land of Waves… I'm guessing it's either an island or near a large body of water since I think Tazuna said he was a bridge builder. …I'm pretty sure he said he was a bridge builder.'_ Naruto paused to stare at Tazuna. _'He looks like a drunk old man to me. I don't know why he'd want ninja protection. He doesn't seem like anyone important-'_

"Move it, idiot!" Sasuke hissed as he gave Naruto a little shove. '_Oops!' _Naruto thought._ 'Gotta stop thinking so hard and focus more on the mission. For starters, I'll start walking – I didn't mean to stop – and pay more attention to what Kakashi-sensei is talking about.'_

"Geez, you don't have to be so rude," Naruto said, moving closer to where Sakura was and tuning into the conversation.

"…Hokage-sama is very wise and powerful…"

'_They're talking about dad now? Well, he is powerful from what I've heard… not that I've ever witnessed any of his amazing jutsus. I've heard that he can be somewhere one second and then the next second he's half way across the country. Of course they're probably exaggerating… but he is called the Yellow Flash and I know he can appear just about anywhere in the blink of an eye if his special kunai are there. He is smart… wise… whatever. He'd have to be to deal with all the… Shit! I'm kinda spacing out again. I'll just look at the landscape and try to keep my mind blank.'_ Naruto thought.

A silence fell upon the ninjas and the client as they continued their journey. Naruto, leading the way and looking at his surroundings, was trying to focus on the mission, but it was proving difficult for him. _'Tree… Tree… Bush… Falling leaf…Tree… Bush… Tr- Hey! A squirrel!… Tree… More falling leaves… Leaves… Hmm… Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves… I wonder why the village is called that. I know that forests surround it, but why isn't it called 'the Village Hidden in the Branches' or 'the Village Hidden in the Tree Trunk' or 'the Village Hidden in the Roots'… I guess it's just the way it sounds. 'Village Hidden in the Leaves' does have a nice ring to it… Gah! Focus Naruto!… Tree… Tree… Shrubs… Puddle… Tre- Wait… Puddle? Why does that- Why do I have a small feeling of déjà vu?'_

As they continued to walk, passing the completely harmless looking puddle, Naruto paused, staring at it. Kakashi looked at Naruto who was looking at the puddle with a questioning glint in his eye.

"Something wrong, Naruto?" Kakashi asked.

Startled from his stare down with the puddle, Naruto looked up at Kakashi and responded, "No, it's nothing." _'It is nothing, right?'_ Naruto questioned himself.

_-Two ninja jumped up from out of the puddle…-_

Suddenly, two ninja with marks through their Mist forehead protectors rise from the puddle. The unknown ninjas trapped a surprised Kakashi with the sharp chains from their gauntlets.

_-"One down." And a terrified scream is heard…-_

"One down," they said as they pulled the chains, killing Kakashi and causing Sakura to scream out in fear and disbelief.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

Focusing their attention on the others, the unknown ninjas continued heading towards Tazuna.

_-The two ninjas are stuck to a tree by the chains that connect them…-_

Sasuke grabbed a kunai and shuriken and ran out in front of the group, throwing the shuriken between the two ninjas, causing them to be pinned to a tree. Enforcing the shuriken, Sasuke threw the kunai at the chain and ran towards the ninja, kicking them apart.

_-One of the ninjas sprinted towards Tazuna and the other came towards…-_

The chain broke and the two ninjas separated, heading to different targets. One started heading to where Tazuna was standing. Seeing this, Sakura stepped in front of him, ready to protect him. The other ninja headed straight for Naruto, who appeared to be frozen.

_'Wh-what the hell is going on? Double vision? No, it's not that. I know what's going to happen a second before it does. No, I see it, I see glimpses of it seconds before it actually happens.' _Confused by the random flashes of the future events, Naruto stayed where he was until a vision overlapped with what was currently occurring.

_-The ninja came at Naruto…_

_…The top of his hand was sliced…-_

The top of Naruto's hand was cut. _'I was injured?' _Naruto thought bewildered. Slightly turning, Naruto saw the enemy ninja turning to look back at him. _'He tried to attack… but I… ducked? I don't remember. I saw a vision of me… but I'm still confused…' _Taking a quick look for Sasuke…

_-Sasuke suddenly appeared in front of Sakura with his arms outstretched, ready to defend…-_

…and saw him in front of Sakura, who was in front of Tazuna. Looking back for the ninja who attacked him, Naruto found the last place were he was to be empty. _'Oh no! Where is he?'_

_-"Yo!"-_

Before the enemy ninja could reach Sasuke, Kakashi stopped him.

"Yo," Kakashi said with a smile, having both enemy ninja in his grasp.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura exclaimed in relief. "But I thought…" She turned back, along with Sasuke and Naruto, to where she thought Kakashi had died only to see pieces of wood.

_-"…Good work Sasuke…_

_…I didn't expect you to freeze like that, Naruto…_

_…I wanted to see who they were really after…_

_…Claws had poison…"-_

Looking at the injury on the back of his hand, Naruto tried to get his bearings as the visions caused him to hear an echo and see with something like double vision. _'What is happening?' _Naruto thought in a panic.

"… alright?"

"Huh?" Naruto asked as he looked up. Kakashi was kneeling in front of him with thinly veiled concern.

"I asked if you were alright. You weren't responding after I asked about your hand wound. Those claws on the gauntlets were dipped in poison," Kakashi said.

Turning to address Sasuke, Sakura, and Tazuna, Kakashi said, "We're going to return to Konoha."

"What?" Sakura asked softly.

"Wait! I-" Tazuna started to say but was stopped by Kakashi putting up a hand in a gesture to stop.

"Naruto has been poisoned and this mission is obviously higher than a C-rank," Kakashi said.

_-Sticking a kunai in his hand to let the poison bleed out…-_

_'Should I?' _Naruto questioned himself. Half-listening to Tazuna, who trying to explain why the two ninjas were after his life, Naruto grabbed a kunai. _'It is my first mission out of the village and the old drunk, err, bridge builder does need help. Those are two reasons why I don't want to go back to Konoha without successfully completing the mission… I also don't want to be the cause of the mission being a failure… even if it isn't a C-ranked mission anymore. If we go back now, I'm pretty sure that dad wouldn't let me go on another C-ranked mission and I'd be stuck with the D-ranked chores again. If we complete this mission, it'll prove to dad that we can handle the bigger missions.' _Naruto angled the kunai above the wound on his hand. He looked at his teammates, his sensei, and the frantic bridge builder. _'Those visions, or whatever they were, caused me to be a liability… I froze and Sasuke and Kakashi-sensei had to save me. I won't let that happen again,' _Naruto swore as he brought the kunai down on his wound and turning his hand so that his palm was facing up so that the poison would bleed out of the injury. _'I will protect the bridge builder and complete this mission. The next time an enemy comes I will fight and defend. I swear it on this wound and this kunai!'_

Naruto ignored the startled gasp from Sakura and the exclamation of "What the hell are you doing, you idiot?" from Sasuke as he bit down on his lip to prevent any sounds from escaping his mouth and he pulled the kunai out of his hand, watching the contaminated blood flow out of the wound.

"Naruto," Kakashi said in a reprimanding tone of voice. "Why did you do that?"

Kakashi grabbed a roll of gauze from his kunai pouch and took Naruto's injured hand. As he began wrapping the cut, Naruto spoke, "I let the poison bleed out so that we can continue with the mission. We don't need to go back so that I can get medical attention. I'm fine now."

Sighing, Kakashi said, "That wasn't the only reason why we were going to head back. The missions is-"

"Not a C-ranked mission anymore and it's more than likely an A-ranked or a B-ranked. I know. I'm not deaf. I heard you guys talking. But Tazuna needs help and I won't turn my back on those who need help. I want to continue the mission. I know we can do it," Naruto said as Kakashi finished wrapping his hand.

"Naruto's right. I want to continue," Sasuke agreed.

"…I'm with Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun," Sakura said after a moment's hesitation.

Looking at his three genin, Kakashi stood up and sighed, putting his hands in his pockets. "You do know that it will be extremely dangerous." Recieving nods from his genin, Kakashi continued, "It looks like I'm out voted. I suppose we will continue on with the mission. But I am expecting full details out of you, Tazuna. I won't have you put my team in danger again by leaving out important information," Kakashi said as Naruto gave cheer, Sasuke gave a smirk, and Sakura gave a nervous smile. Tazuna, on the other hand, looked a mix between relieved and scared.

Naruto looked at his wrapped hand before catching up to Sasuke who started to lead the group away. Not a few moments after Naruto was walking besides Sasuke, Sasuke spoke, "You know, I never pegged you to be a scaredy cat, idiot. Freezing up like that back there."

"I wasn't scared. I was just waiting for the moment when you would fall flat on your face, which would force me to have to save your ass," Naruto retorted smoothly as he shoved Sasuke away from him.

"Naruto," Kakashi called. "Come here."

"…Sasuke started it," Naruto said pointing at Sasuke. Sasuke rolled his eyes and kept walking. Naruto went over to Kakashi, dragging his feet the whole way.

"I just wanted to tell you that if your father condemns me for allowing this mission to continue, I'm taking you down with me," Kakashi said in a sugary sweet voice.

"What? Why me?" Naruto asked.

"You're the one who convinced your teammates to gang up on me," Kakashi said.

"…You're the jounin sensei. Aren't you supposed to keep us in line?" Naruto asked.

"Probably," Kakashi said before making a shooing motion with his hand at Naruto.

"What?"

"I'm keeping you in line. You can go back to your fight with Sasuke."

"Shouldn't you be saying something along the lines of "Don't fight with Sasuke and pay attention to your surroundings" since we're on a high level mission?" Naruto questioned.

"Now Naruto, didn't you just say that I was the jounin sensei?… You shouldn't question your sensei. But it is nice to know that you have common sense. Most ninjas assume that they should always be paying attention to their surroundings."

"Wha-"

"Hn. Idiot," Sasuke said. "Quit asking stupid questions. It's annoying."

"What was that you bastard?" Naruto exclaimed as he stomped up to Sasuke.

* * *

"I'm too old for training kunai. I know how to handle the real things," Kenji complained. "Besides, I thought dad was going to help me."

"I'm sure your father will be home soon, but until then I will help you. And you will be using the training kunai because, while they can still be dangerous, they pose less of a threat."

"But Mom! I can use real kunai better than training kunai," Kenji whined.

"Training kunai are the same as regular kunai; the only difference is that the training kunai are dulled."

"…Fine," Kenji said in a despondent tone, following his mom as she search around the house.

"Did you hide the training kunai?" Kushina asked.

"No."

Kushina gave him a look. "Honest! I swear that I didn't hide them this time," Kenji exclaimed.

"I'm going to assume that you used them last. Where would they be?" Kushina inquired.

"They might be in my room. Or they could be in Naruto-nii-san's room. He helped me train a few months ago. I blackmailed him into it," Kenji said with a bit of pride.

"Kenji," Kushina said with a sigh.

"What?" Kenji asked innocently.

"Why don't you go check your room and I'll go look in Naruto's. Okay?"

"Okay," Kenji said as he walked up the stairs, his mother following up behind him.

Before Kenji walked in his room, Kushina suggested, "Why don't you clean your room up a little while you're looking."

"I can't do both at once. I'm either searching or cleaning, and to be honest, I'd rather search."

"Fine. But you need to clean your room soon before I can't see the floor anymore. As it is, I can only see small sections of your bedroom floor."

"I know where everything is," Kenji said defensively.

"Then do you know where the training kunai are?"

"…Good question," Kenji said before disappearing into his room.

Smiling, Kushina made her way to her oldest son's room. Opening the door, Kushina stepped inside. "At least his room is cleaner than Kenji's," Kushina murmured.

'_I don't want to invade his privacy all that much. I hope that if he has them, they are in plain sight,'_ Kushina thought as she looked around the room, picking up a few items of clothing that were on the floor and putting them into a laundry basket that was in a corner of the room. Going over to Naruto's dresser, she spotted a partially opened drawer with a shirt hanging out of it. Picking up the shirt and folding it, Kushina opened the drawer fully to put the shirt back in. As she was shutting the drawer, something caught her eye. Peeking out from behind the dresser was a small container. _'What's that?'_ Kushina thought as she bent down to pick it up. _'My concealer?'_ Kushina thought, shocked. _'It's empty, but definitely my make up. This was my older one, the one I though I misplaced.'_ Thinking about the new one she recently purchased, Kushina questioned, _'I wonder if he has the one I just bought?'_

"Hey mom! Guess what? The training kunai were in my room all along!" Kenji shouted from his room.

Pocketing the empty container, Kushina walked out of Naruto's room. Kenji met her in the hall with the pouch of training kunai in his hands. Ruffling Kenji's hair, Kushina asked, "Do I want to know how messy your room is now?"

"No. Probably not," Kenji said, ducking out from under her hand and racing down the stairs. "Hurry up, mom!"

"I'm coming," she called, walking down the stairs at an unhurried pace. "Go on out, I'll be there in a minute."

"Okay!" Kenji said.

Making a detour to the living room, Kushina picked up Naomi out of her playpen. "Were you having fun, sweetie?" Kushina asked in a baby voice.

"Ma ma ma ma ma," Naomi chanted.

"We have to go help your brother and watch him train," Kushina said as she walked with Naomi in her arms. Making her way out to the backyard, Kushina saw her son already throwing kunai at the practice targets. Sitting down on the back porch with Naomi on her lap, she thought about the empty container in her pocket. _'Why did Naruto have this? I'll have to see if he has the one I just recently bought.'_

"Did you see that? I totally nailed five bulls eyes in a row!" Kenji exclaimed excitedly.

"Great job!" Kushina responded, smiling. "Keep up the good work!"

'_I'll talk to Naruto when he gets back from his mission.'_ Kushina thought, watching Kenji gather up the kunai he threw.

* * *

AN: Again, sorry for the delay. My life has been really busy. I tried to make it longer than I usually do but I see that it's not that much longer. I also apologize in advance for any spelling or grammar mistakes I've made. Anyway, please Review and tell me what you think.


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